/ Samjhauta Blast Case: Hearing Deferred Till 20 March

The hearing in the case had now been deferred to 20 March. The Special NIA court in Panchkula will hear the case. An anti-terror court in Panchkula trying the 2007 Samjhauta Express blast case had adjourned its hearing to Monday, 18 March, due to an ongoing strike by local lawyers. Special Judge Jagdeep Singh deferred the hearing because of the strike by lawyers on 14 March deferred the hearing.

An anti-terror court in Panchkula trying the 2007 Samjhauta Express blast case had adjourned its hearing to Monday, 18 March, due to an ongoing strike by local lawyers.

Special Judge Jagdeep Singh deferred the hearing because of the strike, NIA counsel Rajan Malhotra said.

"We were not allowed to enter the court complex by the protesting advocates,” said Malhotra, adding the matter was adjourned to 18 March.

The court was earlier expected to pronounce its verdict on Monday, 11 March, in the more than 12-year-old case, but deferred the matter till 14 March after a Pakistani woman filed an application claiming she had evidence relevant to the case.

On 18 February 2007, a blast in the Samjhauta Express – which connects India and Pakistan – killed 68 people, mostly Pakistani nationals.

Aseemanand, a member of the right-wing Hindu group Abhinav Bharat, was accused of being involved in the bombing.